Grimm Future - Rewritten
by Reploid7
Summary: Team HIJX, a team of new students to Beacon Academy have found the creatures of Grimm acting strangely and that a creature thought to be a myth may have something to do with it. Whatever the case, it certainly spells out disaster for Remnant.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1 – Welcome to Beacon

Jake stepped off the airship, looking upon what would be his new home for the next four years of his life. Beacon Academy, a school designed to train the guardians of Remnant, but they're really just referred to as Huntsman and Huntresses.

His cat ears twitched and his tail swayed left and right as he listened in on conversations being engaged between other kids applying to Beacon, but heard nothing of interest, so he just moved on. New students were given maps to the school in order to help familiarize them with the layout easier, but Jake's heard that sometimes there would be some students who couldn't get their hands on a map, so they had to find their way through the school without much help.

He followed the many new students towards the courtyard and placed himself in a corner away from most people. If he was going to socialize, he would do it after initiation. He wasn't feeling very open at the moment. Unfortunately, his luck isn't very good, because he could feel someone poking his kitty ears from behind.

He turned around to find a girl about his age with long black hair and red eyes, still prodding at his ears when he stares at her.

"Could you please stop poking my ears, it's getting annoying."

Finally she stopped, but she remained staring at his Faunus traits. "Do you not see too many Faunus?" Jake asked. She nodded and finally spoke. "I lived with a very discriminatory family, so they made me avoid the Faunus as much as they could."

"What about you then? What do you think of the Faunus?"

"What's to think? You and the other Faunus are just like us Humans."

_Oh good,_ he thought. She's not like all the others. "Can I get your name?"

"It's Haley. Haley Moriarty and it's a pleasure to meet you," she said as she shook hands with him. "The name's Jake Martin. The pleasure's all mine."

**Four hours later…**

Jake unrolled a couple of blankets and pillows as he got ready to sleep, dressed in a simple T-shirt and pajama bottoms. He was quick to fall asleep as soon as he hit the pillow. He's aware of what would come next. A long and painful initiation test was going to take place tomorrow. He wasn't worried though, he would face whatever and get it done.


	2. Launched

Chapter 2 – Launched

Jake woke up with a big yawn. He rolled up his blanket and his pillows and stuffed them into his bag and headed over to the locker room to get his equipment ready for initiation.

As he headed over, he noticed a group of four picking on a young rabbit Faunus. He stared off at them and then turned his head, only so that the bullies wouldn't notice his smile as he sent an electric charge through at them and fried them all, avoiding only the Faunus girl. He gave the girl a winning smile and continued on towards the locker room.

As he got to the locker rooms, he noticed that two other initiates were arguing and it looked like something he could just ignore, until he noticed one of them unsheathing his weapon. In about ten seconds flat he had managed to rush over there, grab the initiate's weapon, swing him into a locker and position the blade of the weapon against his throat.

"Save the fighting for when initiation begins." The assault surprised the initiate and he was made speechless. Jake released him and handed him his weapon. "Just don't do it again, alright? If you get into a fight, there's a chance you'll get kicked out of the school."

"Would all first-year students, please report to Beacon Cliffs for initiation."

Jake headed on over with his gear ready and prepared for his initiation. He stood on one of the platforms and prepared himself for the launch.

Goodwitch and Ozpin briefed them on their assignment for initiation and began to launch the new students one by one into the air. As soon as Jake was launched, he unsheathed his sword and waited until finally the blade shifted into a whip and extended towards the branches of the trees below and then used his aura to slow his descent. The whip penetrated the surface of the branch and slowed his descent further until it was finally safe to land. He pressed a button on his weapon and the blade retracted and finally he re-sheathed it.

_Better to be done with this as fast as possible, _he thought. He activated his semblance and took off, speeding through the forest.

"Hey, stop right there!" That was all he heard before he felt himself come to an abrupt stop. He looked behind him to find Haley holding him by the back of his shirt. _How did she catch me? I was going at top speed!_

"I used my aura to look for the others and you were coming at me fast, so I grabbed you," she said, almost as if she read his mind.

"I guess we're partners then?" More of a statement then an actual question.

"I guess so."

They were about ready to run off when three Beowulves surrounded them. "Oh, well that's just freaking great," Haley shouted to no one. "Got a weapon?" Jake asked.

"Better than that," she replied as she jumped at one of them and lopped off its head with what looked like nothing at all. Jake, however, noticed her aura wrapped around her arm. "That's quite a good use of aura."

Jake charged toward another Beowulf and thrust his sword through its chest and sent an electric charge through the blade, frying it until its body could no longer function. As the two warriors finished off the last of them, they took off running. "If you're able to track the aura of the other initiates, then we should be able to find the general area of the relics, right?"

"You'll have to carry me though. If I try to concentrate on something like this then I'll most likely slow down, so you're going to have to give me a lift."

_You've got to be kidding me._


	3. Coming to a Close

Chapter 3 – Coming to a Close

A white-haired boy named Xavier walked through the foliage, trying to find his way to his objective. Instead, he found a blue-haired girl named Kanade with one of the relics already in hand. "Where do we go from here?"

"I could take you to the forest temple. I saw it off in the distance when I nabbed this thing," she said, holding up the medallion. "I just needed to find a partner before I completed the assignment."

"Fantastic work, by the way. Now we just need to hurry before anything unwelcome arrives." As if on cue, an Ursa Major crashed through the trees, charging towards Xavier and Kanade. The Ursa took a swing at Xavier with its claws, but was narrowly avoided. Kanade took this opportunity to cut into the monster's back. It roared in pain and turned toward Kanade, ready to take her down, but it didn't. It just paused abruptly. It's almost as if Kanade and Xavier had suddenly disappeared from its vision.

"What's going on?" Kanade pondered. "I'm not sure, but let's not stick around to find out," Xavier replied as he grabbed his partner's hand and ran through the trees.

_Meanwhile…_

Jake and Haley finally found the resting place for the relics they needed to complete their assignment. Jake picked up a blue medallion with a wind emblem engraved in the middle. "So I guess we just need to get back to the cliffs now, right?" Before Haley could respond a King Taijitu threw him off to the side and into the trunk of a tree. The pain from the impact hurt too much and he couldn't pick himself up.

The Grimm hovered over him, ready to end him. Haley was running as fast as she could his direction, but he knew she wouldn't make it in time. The Grimm would attack and kill him and then it would be over, yet nothing happened. The Taijitu just stood there, leaning over him. Haley made it over and helped him up, taking him as fast as she could towards the cliffs.

The prey was getting away and yet the Grimm still wouldn't move an inch. Whatever was going on though, Jake and Haley were thankful for it. However, they didn't notice someone in the foliage watching them as they made their way back to Ozpin.

"What was that about? I thought for sure I was a goner," Jake muttered.

"Let's just be thankful that you're still alive, Jake."

They ran as fast as they could through the trees. They expected more Grimm, but much to their surprise, they didn't find any further opposition. Eventually they reached the cliffs and handed their relic to Ozpin and headed back to the academy for the start of their school year.

Ozpin looked on as the rest of the pair-ups made their way back to the cliffs. "What's happening? I expected more Grimm attacks," He thought to himself.

_Three Hours Later…_

"Relic Ray, Brenda D'Frain, Ulric Bane, and Natalie Turner, the four of you have collected the red sun medallions. From this moment on, you will be known as Team BURN."

He looked on to the final team and called them up. "Haley Moriarty, Jake Martin, Xavier Brim, and Kanade Inari, the four of you have collected the blue wind medallions. From this moment on, you will be known as Team HIJX. Quite an interesting name, I might add. Welcome to Beacon Academy."


	4. Heated Arguments

Chapter 4 – Heated "Arguments"

For their first classes, Team HIJX had to take Grimm Studies and, of course, History. Professor Port was, if not delusional, self-centered. Whenever he would do his storytelling routine, every story he told was often about himself when he was younger, never forgetting to call himself handsome at some point in the story. He also kept giving creepy looks at a blonde-haired female student in the upper seats, prompting her to ignore his perverted glances. As for Professor Oobleck, he was definitely better than Peter Port. Although he was hyperactive and zipped across the classroom to the point where the students had to turn their heads every few seconds, he was a driven teacher that never allowed himself to be distracted from his duties.

Team HIJX had noticed that both of these professors had gone into a discussion with Grimm that was thought to be myth.

The subject was mostly focused on one particular Creature of Grimm that has been dismissed as fictional. The Grimm Alpha, otherwise known as the original Grimm. An upperclassman raised her hand and Oobleck called on her. "Excuse me professor, but why are we discussing myths when they are nothing more than just that?"

"Ms. Schnee, what you may not believe is that every supposed fictional story or myth always hides truth behind it in some form and extent."

"But this Grimm Alpha idea is just ridiculous. Creatures of Grimm are wild and mindless and act on instinct alone. The idea of a Grimm that can actually think is just absurd."

"May I finish, Ms. Schnee?"

The young girl sat back down in her seat, mumbling angrily to herself as Professor Oobleck continued. "Now students, myths may seem like nothing more than a fairy tale to you, but just remember, it's not about the myth thought to be fiction, it's about the truth buried within that matters. That is exactly why these so-called fairy tales and myths might have been a tale of an actual historic event, or merely based off one. What matters is that we figure out the truth."

Professor Oobleck dismissed the students and we got out of our seats to leave. Haley ran ahead of the rest of HIJX and grabbed the white-haired girl by the shoulder. "What do you want?" she demanded.

"Why did you interrupt the Professor? He was just doing his job. Don't be rude just because you have a problem with the subject."

"Excuse me? I was merely sharing my thoughts on the subject."

The rest of Team HIJX and the white-haired girl's team stood in the background watching the two argue. "Uh, shouldn't we stop them?" the blonde girl said to everyone. "No, just leave them be, I know Weiss won't back down from this easily," Xavier exclaimed. Everyone turned to him in surprise.

He groaned and explained. "I am Xavier Brim, heir to the Brim mining company. Unlike the Schnee dust company, we mine jewels and iron and other materials like that. I and Weiss have known each other for a while, so I know she won't end this peacefully."

Kanade turned to Weiss' team and asked, "So, what are your names?"

"Blake."

"The name's Yang!"

"And I'm Ruby! What about you guys?"

The teams made introductions, happy to be distracted from Weiss and Haley's argument. Kanade looked up at the clock and jumped. "Oh, crap, we're going to be late for sparring, let's get out of here!"

The two teams ran as fast as possible to sparring, making it to class just in the nick of time.

"Nice to know that even you can show up for class on time, RWBY," Professor Goodwitch stated before announcing the first battle.

_Weiss Schnee vs. Haley Moriarty_

"Oh, this is going to be good," Haley exclaimed, loosening up for the fight. Weiss wore an annoyed expression in response to Haley's confidence as they headed up to the arena and readied their weapons.

_Ready…_

_FIGHT!_

Haley shifted her hammer into its crossbow form and readied a red-tipped arrow, firing it off immediately. Weiss dodged out of the way and thrust Myrtenaster into the floor, summoning ice to rise up below Haley. She jumped up and landed on the tip of one of the ice spikes, using her aura to regulate her balance. She shifted Red Devil back to its hammer form and charged at Weiss from there and swung her weapon as hard as she could, only for her strike to be blocked by one of Weiss' glyphs. Weiss thrust her weapon towards Haley and barely grazed her. She took another swing at Haley, only to have her attack blocked by Red Devil's Crossbow form with an electric stun arrow strung. Before Weiss was able to react, she shot the arrow and it hit her directly, giving off an electric charge, putting her out of commission.

"Ms. Schnee's aura has now dropped into the red zone. The winner of this match is Haley Moriarty."

Haley helped Weiss on her feet and back to her team. "That was a good match, Weiss. You know, despite being a know-it-all, stuck-up rich girl, you're alright."

"Is that supposed to be an apology for the argument and hitting me in the chest with a stun arrow?"

"No, of course not, Weiss. I hate to break it to you, heiress, but this isn't your father's school, you don't get whatever you want, just because you say you want it. I'll see you later, RWBY, but I'm going to the cafeteria."

Weiss was left a little dumbstruck as the leader of HIJX walked off.


	5. A Problem with Parents

Chapter 5 – A Problem with Parents

After about a week and a half, HIJX met up with Teams RWBY and JNPR for lunch. Jake yawned, uninterested in the conversation going on between his friends. He sipped soda out of one of the Beacon coffee mugs and ate his food. Suddenly he heard his name being called.

"Jake, are you alive in there?" Kanade started tapping his head. "I'm listening now, so you can stop tapping my head, Kanade."

Instead of relenting, she kept at it and he got frustrated. "You want me to fry your finger, Inari?" She finally stopped and let Phyrra repeat what she had said earlier. "We were just talking about our parents and wanted to know if you wanted to join in."

Not very likely, as parents were a sore subject for Jake, but Kanade read his expression. "You're hiding something, Jakey-boy! Spill it!"

"Not going to happen, Inari. Now leave me alone." Of course, Kanade wouldn't do so. She just kept bothering him. "Come on, come on, little kitty! What's the word on your headaches?"

"I don't want to talk about it!"

"What? Something bad happen? Did they die?"

"Kanade," Xavier shouted for her to keep quiet, but it was too late now. "No, they're not dead. It's more complicated than that. Just leave me alone."

He got up and threw his trash away before heading to his dorm.

_Three hours later…_

Jake was sleeping in his bed when he heard a knock on the door. "It's unlocked, go ahead and come in."

Ruby and Blake walked and sat down on Jake's bed next to him. "Hello, Jake."

"Hey Ruby, hey Blake, What's going on?"

"We were just a little concerned, that's all."

"You shouldn't be, Ruby, I'm fine. Kanade's just rude and I plan to have a talk with her about that later."

Ruby and Blake looked at Jake with curiosity. "Oh, don't tell me that you want to know too."

"There's no denying that we're a little curious, but you deserve to keep your personal things to yourself," Blake replied. He smiled at her, glad that she can keep some self-preservation, unlike **someone **on his team. "I really appreciate that, Blake; You too, Ruby." He laughed as he smelled something. "I promise to keep your secret too, Blake, if you don't want others to know." It was no secret to him what Blake was. Other Faunus gave off a unique scent and he could easily smell it.

"Thank you, Jake. That's very kind of you."

Ruby looked back and forth between Jake and Blake and finally realized what Jake meant by "her secret".

"So, as far as my parents go, I don't feel comfortable talking to anyone right now," Jake muttered.

"We understand, Jake."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow, Jake!"

After they left, Jake reached under his shirt to his back, feeling the scars crossing over each other and groaned. "Glad they understand."

He lay his head down on his pillow and went to sleep.


	6. Dealing with Bullies

Chapter 6 – Dealing with Bullies

It was the weekend and Team HIJX decided to go ahead and practice sparring. Once inside the sparring room, they found a brunette rabbit Faunus being picked on by a second-year team. They were known as CRDL and they were infamous for bullying the Faunus of the school. Their victim today was none other than Velvet Scarlatina.

Velvet was usually more well-known for being a gifted scholar, rather than a fighter. Although skilled in combat she didn't really spar very often, making her a prime candidate for bullying.

"Should we help her?" Haley whispered.

"Best not to get involved," Xavier replied.

"Well you can go ahead and sit on the sidelines; I'm not going to let this slide." Jake hadn't brought his weapon with him, but it didn't matter much. He had an excellent speed semblance and he took full advantage of it as soon as he took his first step. He zipped towards the group and tackled Cardin before standing up on his torso.

"Try to play nice Cardin, you've got four-on-one and that's not quite fair," he said with a smug grin. Sky attempted tackle him, but he leaped out of the way and Sky just ended up dog piling onto Cardin. "Not the brightest set of fighters, wouldn't you agree? Try to think before you act, Sky."

Next up was Russel Thrush. He managed to sneak up on Jake and place him in a chokehold. "That was a bad idea, Russel!" Jake sent an electric current into Russel, forcing him to release his hold on Jake.

All that was left was Dove Bronzewing. He turned left and right, looking back at his injured teammates and stepped back a couple feet. "You're a smart man, Dove."

Jake turned to face his team, finding that they were holding up whiteboards with numbers written on them.

Kanade held up a 10, as did Haley, but Xavier held up a 5. "What's with the low grade, Xavier?"

He nodded to Cardin and Sky, who had gotten back on their feet and were now charging at him. "Oh yeah, I forgot about you two."

Before they could engage in further conflict, Professor Goodwitch interrupted them. "Excuse me, but wouldn't you like to settle this in the arena?"

"Fine, we'll settle this the official way," Cardin growled. "I'll take you on!"

"Are you sure you want to go at it alone, Cardin? I guarantee you'll need a partner." Cardin narrowed his eyes into angry slits and headed to the arena.

When Jake got into the ring, Goodwitch handed him his weapon Storm Bolt. "Thank you, professor."

_Jake Martin vs. Cardin Winchester_

_Begin!_

Cardin charged in and swung his weapon downward, but Jake zipped out of the way and grabbed him by the neck. In the brief moment of surprise, Cardin was slammed into the floor immediately. Jake zipped back a bit, waiting for him to get back on his feet.

"Come on Cardin, what are you doing? I thought you were supposed to be some big tough guy. How about that gem on your weapon? Is it just for show?"

Cardin got up on his feet and pointed his weapon at Jake, energy gathering into the gem. Jake looked up at the aura displays and noticed Cardin's aura going down as his weapon charged. "What a risky move to use, Cardin," he thought, "No wonder you rely on physical combat."

Cardin released the immense amount of aura into a charged blast towards Jake, but, once again, he simply zipped out of the way. He swung Storm Bolt at Cardin, placing an electric charge into the tip. Cardin still had some aura left, so he should be able to protect himself from getting cut. When the blade connected, Cardin was electrocuted until his aura finally dropped into the red before Jake drew his weapon back.

"The winner is Jake Martin," Glenda announced.

Jake grinned as walked off the arena, giving Velvet and his Team a winning glance. "Alright, Jake, that was a good fight. I honestly didn't expect you to win that," Kanade said as she pat his shoulder.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Inari. I really appreciate it," he groaned. He felt Velvet tap his shoulder. "Thank you for sticking up for me. I'm sorry if it was problem," she said in a low tone. He almost couldn't hear her. "No problem at all! I didn't mind it at all. Besides, I needed to get in some sparring practice today, and what better way to do that then to fight Cardin Winchester."

_**Elsewhere…**_

"What an impressive son you've got there." A Faunus and a human were watching a live display on a monitor. They viewed the fight between Jake and Cardin. "But are you sure he has what it takes?"

"I'm positive."

"Alright, kitty, but it'll take more than this to convince the boss."

"I'm already aware, Roman."


	7. An Unpleasant Stroll

Chapter 7 – An Unpleasant Stroll

_**Area Unknown**_

"We still need Gemini if we're going to finish research."

"What are you talking about? You've got plenty of candidates for Gemini."

"But he's the most likely to survive experimentation! Besides, Jonathon is already on his way to get him."  
_**Beacon Academy**_

A few months into the school year and everyone was issued on a week-long vacation. Some of the students stayed behind at the school. Jake stayed at Beacon while the rest of his team went home to their families. All of JNPR went home, with Jaune and Phyrra visiting the Arc family. Thankfully, the same goes for CRDL, so now he won't have to deal with the lamest bullies in existence. As for Team RWBY, everyone left for home, except for Blake.

She had come by Jake's dorm and asked him to accompany her into Vale for a few errands and he was happy to oblige.

They headed down to the city and entered a few dust shops for a bit, buying their share of dust crystals for ammo, and then headed to a café. Jake drank a vanilla latte while Blake sipped black tea. That was when he arrived.

"Hello Jake, it's so good to see you, son. Where have you been all this time?"

Jake bolted up, knocking his chair down, as he faced the man. "Leave now or else!" He shot a menacing glare at the man. "Oh, you're so scary, son. Don't be so mean to your old man," he replied.

Jake turned to Blake, ready to tell her to run, but she seemed to recognize the man. "Jonathon, what are you doing here?"

"Miss Blake Belladonna, it surprises me to see you as a student at Beacon. I see you know my son, Jake. So nice to know he's making friends."

"What do you want, Jonathon?"

"I just wanted to borrow my son for a while, Blake. The White Fang would like to meet him. Speaking of which, Jake, where's your sister, Charlotte?" Jake growled and shot a lightning bolt at Jon, only for it to be blocked. "That's just sad, son. I thought I taught you better than that."

"Get out now, dad!"

"No can do, kiddo!" Jonathon zipped at Jake, weapon drawn. He barely managed to avoid the attack.

Jonathon's swung his axe again at Jake, barely missing once again. Jake zipped over to Blake, grabbed her arm and ran as fast as he could to Beacon. Blake managed to keep up with his pace.

Jonathon gave chase and shifted his axe into a sniper rifle. He shot off a couple of dust rounds at his son, who was trying his best to avoid the gunfire. Jon was slowly gaining on them.

"Why are we running, Jake?"

"I can't take him on and neither can you. We can't even beat him if we worked together. My father has taken down an entire police force by himself. Do you honestly think that two students can do any better? Besides, he never goes alone. He's probably got White Fang soldiers ready to-!" As if on cue, Blake and Jake were knocked off their feet from a dust round shot out of a rocket launcher.

Jon and three other White Fang soldiers approached their targets, standing over them, ready to take them to god knows where.

That's when one of the soldiers a bo staff to the rib cage and got knocked down. A monkey Faunus with blonde hair stood in the soldier's place. "I'd leave the two cats alone, if I were you, boys."

The boy swung his staff and bashed another soldier in the head before he could react and then he separated his staff into double-barrel gunchucks. He blasted the third soldier as he tried to attack him and knocked him out immediately.

All that was left was Jonathon. "What a surprise. I didn't expect a Faunus to intervene. Care to tell me your name?"

The boy helped Blake and Jake back on their feet. "It's Sun Wukong. Make sure you don't forget the name when I crack your skull!"

Before they could engage in another fight, the police showed up followed by a number of huntsmen and huntresses. "I gotta go, kids. Don't want to waste any further time here. I'll be back, don't worry." Jonathon zipped off, leaving the White Fang soldiers to the police.

"What was all that about?" Sun asked. Blake looked to Jake for a brief moment and then turned to Sun. "We don't know, but thanks for the assistance, Sun."

"No problem, Blake. I'll see you later."

He ran off, leaving Blake and Jake alone with the police.

_**Elsewhere…**_

"I thought you said that you had it under control, Kitty," Roman shouted. "If I wasted anymore time there, and then the next person would have been Ozpin and Goodwitch. I'm not risking the mission to impatience," Jonathon threw back; "We need to be very patient if this project is going to be successful!"

"Then I suggest that we try a better opportunity to grab what we need."

"Beacon Academy is having their annual Remnant Ball in about a month. All the teachers, students, and staff members will be gathered in one part of the academy. That should give us enough opportunity to satisfy you, Torchwick."


	8. Bones Broken, Heart Fixed

Chapter 8 – Bones Broken, Heart Fixed

After everyone got back from their school break, it was announced that all classes were going to be cancelled for a week, save for Sparring. Teams HIJX and RWBY were late for class and were rushing to the Sparring Room.

Luckily no one from either team had a fight beforehand.

"So why would they cancel our classes to give us more sparring time?" Xavier questioned. "Suspicious activity from the White Fang has come up," Jake answered. Of course he would know.

After Jonathon Martin was driven off, the police had begun to question him, but before they could get anything out of him, Ozpin had come and taken Jake and Blake back to the Academy. After making him promise that he wouldn't tell anyone about his relationship with Jonathon, Jake answered Ozpin's questions. True to his word, Ozpin kept his secret, only releasing necessary knowledge.

_Next Match-up_

_Jake Martin vs. Yang Xiao-Long_

"Are you serious?" Jake groaned as he made his way to the arena.

"GO ON, JAKE! KICK HER ASS!"

"GOOD LUCK, YANG!"

"GIVE US A GOOD FIGHT!"

Jake's friends were giving Yang and he mixed comments as they cheered on. He groaned and unsheathed Storm Bolt, while Yang prepared Ember Celica.

_Begin!_

Jake zipped ahead and whacked her upside the head with the flat of the blade, sending a quick charge of electricity through it. Yang recovered from the blow quickly and swung her fist at him, but he dodged the attack and smacked her again in the side.

Jake kept up his speedy offense, slowly draining her aura. She got down low and did a swift 360-degree leg sweep, knocking Jake off his feet. Then, she attempted to stomp on his torso, but he rolled out of the way and got back up on his feet.

He switched Storm Bolt into whip mode and cracked the blade at her, but she grabbed the blade and pulled hard on it, drawing him in, before giving him a good hard punch to the face. Before he fell over, she grabbed him by his shirt and pummeled him. He electrocuted her, managing to get her to let go, but her punches left him stumbling as he backed away.

The electricity he sent into her body fried some of her hair and when she finally noticed, she exploded. Literally! With blind fury she sent him flying across the room with all her strength. It was too painful to move.

_Winner!_

_Yang Xiao-Long!_

Both Team RWBY and HIJX came over to Jake immediately and picked him up and took him to the Medical Wing.

"He's broken at least six ribs. Who did this exactly?" The nurse said.

Everyone turned to Yang without hesitation. "What? It was a sparring match!" Yang said.

"There's this thing, Yang, it's called 'holding back'," Haley replied.

The nurse took another look at the X-ray and turned to everyone. "It will take at least six weeks for him to recover. At least, that would be the normal amount of time, but here at Beacon, it should take just two."

"Damn it, Jake. You get to stay here for the week while we have to slave away in Sparring." Kanade groaned.

"Let's see you try lying in the Medical Wing with six broken ribs and find out how you like the smell of Antibiotics for the week."

"Well you all have to leave. There's only supposed to be two visitors allowed here." The nurse pushed them all out of the room and went right back to work.

_**Three hours later…**_

All of Jake's friends came to visit, mostly in pairs at a time. The only one who didn't visit him was Weiss. She said she didn't see the point in visiting him if he was going to be up and about again soon. Now it was Blake's turn. She asked the Nurse to leave the room and although hesitant, she obliged and waited outside the door.

"How are you feeling, Jake?"

"Even though Yang isn't beating on me anymore, I still feel like a steam roller is sitting on top of my chest." Blake shuddered a little. "Hey, don't worry about it. I'll be out of here soon enough. Although I have no doubts that two weeks will feel much longer for me."

"It will feel the same for all of us. We'll all be waiting for when you're released."

"Thanks, Blake. I know you're all worried. Well, maybe not Weiss." Despite being friends, Jake and Weiss still felt distant from each other.

"That girl is still _Weiss _Cold."

"That was a terrible pun, Jake," Blake said with a laugh. Jake scratched his cat ears a bit. "Anyways, I should probably thank you and Ozpin for keeping my secret."

"Everyone has secrets, Jake."

"Yeah, but mine aren't something I'd like to share, so thank you anyways."

Blake smiled down at Jake and he suddenly felt a little nervous. "So, uh, I was wondering, Blake," he began. "What is it, Jake?" It took him a couple minutes to say it. "After I'm released, would you go on a, uh…date with me?"

_Outside the Medical Wing…_

Kanade was eavesdropping on the conversation. She grinned evilly. "I can't wait to tell the others," she thought to herself. Suddenly, the Nurse grabbed her shoulder and pushed her away. "Go back to your dorm room!"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"I've already got what I came here for," she thought to herself as she walked away.


	9. First Date

Chapter 9 – First Date

As Blake walked back to her dorm, she found that both her team and Team HIJX were there waiting for her. "What's going on here?"

"Kanade told us that Jake asked you out, Blake," Xavier explained. Blake turned to Kanade with a grumpy expression. "What? I just overheard a conversation and relayed what I heard to my team…and yours too." Haley held her hand up and smacked Kanade in the back of the head.

"You had no right to spy on them, Kanade!" Xavier and Haley were not at all happy with her. "Yeah, I've got to admit, that's pretty low," Yang commented, "Even though it's awesome news."

Blake switched her glance to Yang, annoyed. "You've finally found love!" She laughed, but no one else would join in. "Come on, guys!"

"Just stay out of her personal business. If she's asked out to a date, than no one else should have the right to tell anyone but her," Weiss said.

"Wow, since when are you such a date expert, Weiss?" Yang asked. She just growled in response, trying to keep some self-preservation. Blake groaned and went to leave when Yang grabbed her shoulder. "Wait, can't we help in any way?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You know, to make your date better?"

"No, Yang, just stay out of it." She shut the door behind her, leaving everyone to think about the situation.

"You really had no right to do that, Kanade! You two had better stay out of this from here on out. Do you understand me?" Haley ordered. Yang and Kanade begrudgingly nodded in response and Team HIJX left the dorms.  
But, of course, that wouldn't be the end of it.

Two weeks later, after Jake was finally released from the medical wing, Blake went down to Vale to meet up with him for their date. Yang and Kanade were hiding in the shadows, watching Blake. "Okay, so are we ready to get started?" Yang asked. Kanade nodded quickly. "Let's do this!"

Jake was waiting near a dust shop wearing an orange T-shirt with his emblem, the Storm-Polished Gem on it as well as blue jeans and yellow and orange skate shoes.

Blake was wearing her usual outfit, making Jake laugh a little. "What is it?"

"How often do you wear that same outfit, Blake?"

"I never really got too many clothes other than this."

Jake laughed even further. "Alright, alright, come on, Blake. Our first stop is a clothes store. We need to get you some less serious clothes." And off they went. Yang and Kanade followed them as quietly as possible.

"He just insulted her outfit!" Yang exclaimed. "Stay quiet, Yang, or you'll blow our cover!"

Yang begrudgingly ceased her complaining and they continued to follow the couple, making observations.

The two Faunus headed into a clothes store and they looked for more casual clothes. Finally, they found a black layered shirt with black-and-white striped sleeves along with an emblem of the crescent moon on the back. From pants, Blake picked up a pair of black and red cargo shorts that reached her knees.

Jake noticed a sign that advertised shoe design for a pair of skate shoes. Jake headed on over and ordered a pair of black and white skate shoes with Blake's emblem on the sides. He paid the price for all the clothes they got and Blake dressed up in her new casual outfit.

Blake looked herself over for a bit before heading on over to Jake. "You look good, Blake!"

"It feels a bit strange," she muttered. "It's fine, Blake, don't worry about it."

They left the store and Yang and Inari came out of hiding. Yang was steaming. "It's like he's turning her into a tomcat!" Inari gave Yang a quizzical look. "Tomcat" was a strange choice of words. They continued onward, following them to their next destination.

Next, they headed off to a café. Yang and Inari put on disguises for this next part, as there wasn't a single place for them to hide in. Yang and Inari wore the cliché trench coat and sunglasses disguise, along with old hats to hide their hair.

Blake ordered black tea while Jake decided on a pumpkin spice cappuccino. They began to engage in conversation, but what was being said, Yang and Inari couldn't hear. Yang got up to get closer, but Kanade stopped her. "What are you doing? You could blow our cover!"

"We can't hear anything unless we get closer." She continued to move closer to the table, but she made it seem as though she were just passing by. Luckily for her, the restroom was in the direction she was moving.

As she got closer, she noticed Jake smiling more grimly than when she was back at her own table. When she got close enough, he pressed an open palm against her side and blasted a powerful charge into her body, knocking her down. "Lose the getup, Yang, we know it's you. You can tell Kanade to end the charades too."

Yang grumbled and tore her cliché disguise off to show Inari that it was over. "How long did you two know?"

Blake chuckled before responding. "We knew from the very beginning."

Blake and Jake sent them off back to Beacon immediately. "Why can't we just get some privacy?"

"We just have to pick our moments, I suppose."

"Hey Blake, would you be my partner at the Remnant ball that's coming up?" Blake smiled and gave him a peck on the cheek. "Sure, Jake, why not?"

_Elsewhere…_

"Your last chance is approaching within the week, Jonathon."  
"Understood, Cinder, I promise not to fail this time." He felt a hand on his shoulder. "You had better keep that promise, Jonathon. Screw things up for us and we will have to take things into our own hands. We will allow you the use of the lower forces, but that's it."

"I understand sir."


	10. The Remnant Ball

Chapter 10 – The Remnant Ball

Jake and the rest of his team were preparing for the Remnant Ball which would take place that very night. Inari was dressed in a red and purple dress, Xavier was suited up in a white tux, Haley had a red dress, but Jake was going with the commonplace black tux.

They stepped out of their dorms to meet up with their friends. Teams RWBY and JNPR were all dressed up for the ball except for Yang. "What's with you, Yang?"

"She couldn't get a date to the Ball," Ruby replied. Jake laughed a bit, "What? Did you scare off the male student body?"

"Don't make me sock you in the gut, kitty!" Jake looked over Team RWBY, but Blake was nowhere to be found. "Hey, where's Blake, guys?"

"Oh, she's still getting dressed. Not used to wearing a dress, I suppose," Weiss replied.

Jake snickered under his breath and muttered, "She's not used to casual clothing either."

While his friends went ahead to the ballroom, Jake stayed behind to wait for Blake to come out of her dorm room. After a while, he heard Blake open the door. She came out in a black and white formal dress. "Come on, Blake, or we'll be late." He grabbed her hand and they made their way to the ballroom.

As they walked in, the sight of so many couples came into view half of them were dancing while the other half was getting food for the evening. "So what do we do now?"

Jake thought for a moment. "I guess we should dance?" It was more of a question than a statement. By the time they had reached the middle of the room, they realized they had no idea how to dance. "Aw crap, what do we do?" Jake mumbled. "I don't know, I thought you knew!"

"You two are hopeless," Weiss exclaimed as she made her way over with Xavier. "Here, let us help you," Xavier said with a smile. It was obvious that he was stifling laughter. "You put your left hand on her waist and you hold her left hand with your right." The two Faunus followed his instructions hesitantly, embarrassed that they needed help. As if from nowhere, they were pulled away from Xavier and Weiss over to the windows in the ballroom.

"Are you okay?" Ruby asked. She and her date had pulled them away from the most embarrassing moment of their lives. "Yeah, we're fine, Ruby, thanks for the help," Blake replied.

"Are you sure? You two looked like you were face to face with a Deathstalker," Ruby's date exclaimed. "I think we'd rather face a Deathstalker than dance." Jake looked at Ruby's date with curiosity. "Aren't you from Team BURN?"

He nodded sheepishly. "Yeah, my name's Relic, it's nice to meet you." He held his trembling hand out for Jake and he shook it laughing. "The pleasure's all mine, Relic."

"So what's up? How come you two aren't dancing either?"

Ruby and Relic looked at each other nervously. "Ah, I see now. What a date you picked up, Ruby. A guy who's just as shy and nervous as you is a perfect match for you! Now I'm curious, who asked who to this ball?"

Ruby raised her hand for a moment. "Ah, in that case, Relic, you should have more confidence. You were chosen by a cutie like Ruby." Blake chuckled a little in the background.

Jake turned to the windows admiring the view when he noticed a red glow in the distance. It happened all at once. A fire dust round broken the windows and blew everyone off their feet. The doors burst open and more fire dust rounds were fired off.

Jake was ready to get back on his feet when he felt someone put their foot on his back, forcing him back down. "Sorry to drop in uninvited, kiddo, but we don't plan on leaving this time without you." It was his father again. "Get off of me right now!" He was about to send an electric current into Jonathon's legs, when a White Fang grunt kicked him in the face, knocking him out cold. "Let's get going, boys!"

He picked Jake up and turned to leave when he found his path blocked by Blake. "Let him go!"

"You look so beautiful in that dress, Ms. Belladonna. I wouldn't want to rip it in battle. Out of my way now," He ordered. She stood her ground, however.

"Very well then," He muttered, "I guess I can have some fun before I leave." He threw Jake across the room, only for him to be caught by a red-haired Faunus wearing a mask on his face. Adam Taurus, Blake's old partner.

"Come back here," she yelled as she started after him. Jon grabbed her by her dress and pulled her to the ground. "Come on now, first you challenge me to a fight and now you're having second thoughts?"

Jon pointed his weapon at Blake. "Either you fight me or you get out of my way!"

Before he knew it, though, Relic had placed the blade of his sword against his throat. "Get out now!"

"Well, well, another one!" Ruby ran and stood by Blake's side and before he knew it, Team RWBY had gathered around him. "Well, huntsman and huntresses and soon, Professor Ozpin and Goodwitch. I suppose I should retreat again. Adam should be getting back to us soon anyway. He sent a shock through Crescent Rose and Ruby backed away, giving him the opportunity to jump out the window and land into a bullhead. "I hope to see you kids again soon!"

The airship took off, leaving everyone wondering what they were doing here. Blake took off immediately.

Meanwhile, Jake was being carried off through the academy by Adam. He felt something pull against his leg and he tripped over it. "That's as far as you go, Bull boy!" A Faunus girl identical to Jake came forth, wielding a whip sword of which the blade had tripped him up. "They didn't tell me about this," Adam exclaimed as he got on his feet. Dropping Jake to the ground, he placed his hand on the hilt of his weapon.

"Of course they didn't tell you anything about us." Another Faunus came out of hiding. This one was a woman who also bore resemblance to Jake. "We were a surprise, for you and for him," she said pointing at Jake.

Behind this woman came Beacon Academy teachers and staff, all raising their weapons to him. "God damn it!" He drew his weapon and aimed the blade at Jake's throat, threatening to kill him. Something felt different though, as if his feet weren't touching the floor. He looked down and realized he wasn't wrong. He wasn't touching the ground, he was floating. He noticed Haley standing off on the side. She appeared focused and her body was glowing with her aura. She had shifted his body and took gravity away from him. He lost balance and fell on his back when gravity was returned to him.

Suddenly, the entire staff of Beacon was all over him, restraining him and keeping him pinned to the floor. Blake emerged from the crowd and shook Jake's shoulder, waking him up.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, but what happened?" Then he remembered getting kicked and instinctively felt his bruise and drew his hand away just as fast.

"Where is Jonathon?" Jake asked.

"He got away from us," she replied, "As did a number of other Faunus from the White Fang."

The woman that led the Academy Staff to Adam approached and knelt down next to Jake, smiling. "It's so good to see you again, Jake," she exclaimed, pulling him into a hug. The girl from earlier came by and laughed at Adam as he was escorted out of the room. "That's what you get for messing with Jake!"

It was his mother and sister, Melanie and Charlotte.


	11. Truth Be Told

Chapter 11 – Truth be told

"Alright, mom, what are you doing here?"

Melanie smiled at her son. "What, am I not allowed to visit you?" He stared at her, irritated, knowing that she wasn't here for that alone. "Alright, I had some business with the Headmaster. Your sister wanted to come along to see you, despite being the leader of her own team back at the Academy in Atlas."

She turned around and headed off through the hallways, leaving Jake with the rest of the crowd. Charlotte walked over and looked at Blake. "Who's your pretty friend, Jakey?"

Jake pushed against her shoulders. "Back away, Charlie, this is Blake and no, she's not your type now get going!" Charlotte groaned in disappointment and disappeared into the crowd. "What was that all about?" Blake asked.

"My twin sister, Charlotte is a lesbian, so you might want to keep your distance from her."

Yang appeared and put him into a headlock. "What's wrong, Jakey-boy? Afraid your sister is going to steal your date?"

"Shut it, Goldilocks!" She let go of him and he distanced himself immediately. The rest of his friends joined her and gathered around. They asked the usual questions and he answered them all with ease, but one question stood out from the rest.

"Why would the White Fang come here for you?"

It was Weiss who asked the question, but she wasn't done.

"The White Fang break into the school and injure innocent students all so that they can take you back with them. Why would they be so interested in you, Jake? There's obviously something you're not telling us."

Weiss waited for an explanation, but he just turned and left for his dorm. "Hey, come back here!"

She wasn't going to get her answer, not now.

Jake threw himself onto his bed and closed his eyes, welcoming sleep. It didn't come as quickly as he wanted, but nonetheless he got what he wanted.

The next day was relatively normal. Jake and his friends took their classes, ate lunch, ran some errands, the usual stuff.

Meanwhile, Team RWBY was heading back to their dorm after running a few errands in Vale. "Still stressing over Jake, Weiss?" Yang's question broke Weiss out of deep thought.

"It's none of your business, Yang!"

"It's none of yours either, Weiss. If the little kitty wants to keep to himself, you've got no right to complain." Weiss mumbled angrily to herself as they made their way back to their dorm.

Later that night, Weiss was woken up from the sound of a door opening. She looked outside her dorm and found Jaune and Phyrra exiting their dorm to train on the roof. "Good evening, Weiss, sorry if we woke you up," Phyrra whispered.

Weiss was about to respond when Jaune went over to the next dorm room door and knocked. "Jake are you ready?"

Jaune just barely heard him say 'Almost'. "When does Jake ever train with you?" Weiss questioned.

"He doesn't train with us, Weiss. He likes to sit on the roof and watch," Phyrra answered. Why does Jake bother wasting time watching them train when he could be sleeping? The things she didn't know about him were starting to drive her insane.

After Jaune and Phyrra left, Weiss decided that this was her best chance to interrogate him, so she ran into his dorm room. Everyone was asleep except for Xavier and Jake. Jake was in the middle of putting on a new shirt. His back was turned and from that, Weiss saw it. Dozens of scars embedded in the skin on his back from numerous injuries. The one scar that stood out was the White Fang insignia seared into his skin.

Xavier was on his feet in seconds. He was trying to push her out the door, but she remained grounded.

"I heard you down the hall, Weiss. It really helps to know what you're going to do when you're so close to our dorm," Jake muttered. He knew she was coming and he didn't seem the least bit surprised, but his tone held obvious anger. He held it back as best he could, though.

"Are you done snooping around, Weiss? Because I have someplace to be and you're not blocking my way, so move, you're in the way." He slipped on a new shirt and walked to the door, stopping because Weiss hadn't moved. She looked down to the floor and moved out of the way.

Xavier waited for Jake to leave and headed to Weiss. He took her hand and led her down to the cafeteria. He wasn't sure where to start, but Weiss started for him.

"Did you know about this?"

Xavier nodded and Weiss banged against the table. "Why didn't you tell me about this?"

"I know that you don't trust the Faunus, Weiss. He doesn't trust you with this information and neither do I!"

"Then why don't you tell me now?"

Xavier sighed and looked on. He considered it for a moment before relenting. "I suppose after what you saw, it's too late not to tell you. Jake is the son of two Faunus. Both were members of the White Fang when their first leader was in charge and when the White Fang underwent new management, his mother left the organization, attempting to take Jake and Charlotte with her. Unfortunately, Jonathon, his father, took custody of Jake while Melanie took custody of Charlotte. Jake lived with his father for weeks. His father beat Jake every day, but the Jake was planning to run away. Jonathon found out and seared the White Fang insignia onto his back as punishment, but he continued onward and ran away. He's lived with his grandparents since then, sending letters to his mother and sister who moved to Atlas. At least now they're back. So now you know why he kept to himself."

"That doesn't answer why the White Fang attacked the school to get him," Weiss pointed out. "Weiss, its bad enough he faces his abusive father when he just wants to forget about it. Just leave him alone, Weiss, he's got a lot on his mind," he replied.

Weiss stood up and left the cafeteria, running the new information in her mind. She went to her dorm and found Blake sitting up in her bunk, fully awake, waiting for Weiss. "Are you happy now, Weiss?"

Without response, she went to her bed and covered herself in the sheets, trying to push the image of his scars from her mind.


End file.
